Moncrieff’s Disappearing Guns David Moore
advantage of lateral range was an improbable one, arguments that indicate a disposition to create
namely the case of one or a small number of vessels positions for the use of casemates instead of using
attacking a number of heavy batteries, was regarded casemates only where that expensive form of battery
by Moncrieff as a sweeping condemnation. is the best alternative. He asked :-
‘To admit this ... would be to assume that the fire of ‘Is the overhead cover of a casemate employed for
heavy guns in battery can only be advantageous when coast defence really so important that it justifies that
delivered to their direct front, a limitation which I form of battery being generally adopted for sea faces
deny belongs to the accepted principles of in preference to a new class of open battery which
Preview
fortification, and which if allowed to have substantial has greater offensive power by means of increased
existence in the mind of the military engineer, would lateral range, and from being less encumbered by its
render him a very expensive, if not inefficient, own smoke; is much more difficult to attack by curved
designer of national works of defence.’ fire than any other open battery, the range of which is
easily judged; has a parapet which cannot be
On the subject of the comparative merits of open or breached by direct fire; in which the men are
casemated batteries Moncrieff interpreted English to completely protected from direct fire by having no
have narrowed the comparison to one between port; and which, notwithstanding all these
Moncrieff batteries and casemated or shield batteries. advantages, is much cheaper.’
He therefore took this as his own premise.
One statement made by English prompted Moncrieff
Naval officers would, he supposed be the best judges to object most strongly. This concerned his premise
of how naval artillery can be applied to the greatest that a 9-inch gun could not be fairly compared with a
advantage, and they have stated that when land works shield that had been found by direct experiment to be
are to be attacked, they prefer to reserve tactical fire ‘...completely proof against the 25 ton gun’.
for large objects, such as towns or batteries containing
barracks and many guns, and when they bring direct Moncrieff pointed out that this was true as far as the
fire into play, they like to come to sufficiently close iron was concerned, but the statement was utterly
quarters to produce the required effect quickly, and incorrect and unfair. A shield is no more than a block
above all, they like to see what they intend to attack. of iron with a hole in it. It would fall down unless
Lieutenant English discredited the advantage of supported. by itself it was of no use. It needed to be
concealment belonging to the new system for two fitted into a parapet made of earth and
reasons, that the newspaper press will give the gun concrete, or other materials. Only when it is so placed
positions to 50 yards, and that puffs of smoke are and a gun and platform, and magazines added can it
prominent objects in the landscape. The newspapers be compared with a gun pit which has all such
may be able to tell the positions of guns to within 50 requirements. A shield battery in that sense had not
yards, but if that is all they could do the sailor would been found by direct experiment to be completely
prefer other sources of information. Surely he would proof against the 25 ton gun as stated by English. In
prefer to take aim by laying his guns on the ports of fact a shield-parapet had not been tested or fired at in
the casemates or shields and observing the hits and any way. The vulnerable area exposed to direct fire in
correcting accordingly. A miscalculation of fifty such a shield-battery is more than a hundred times
yards when firing at a casemate would not be serious greater than that of a Moncrieff battery and yet why
as the ricochet might give as good a hit as if the range was there no proposal to try it by firing at it ?
had been calculated correctly. For a vertical target
such as a properly constructed Moncrieff pit the error With obvious ire Moncrieff hits home :-
either sends the shot clear over the battery or if short ‘The shield-battery is accepted without a trial as
causes ricochet, which would amount to the same perfect, with all its doubtful points, simply because
thing, that is to say a ricochet from the glacis of a the iron part of it has shown certain powers of
Moncrieff pit would send the shot clean over it. With endurance, while its rival, the pit, with fewer doubtful
regards to the puffs of smoke Moncrieff stated that he points, is alone to be tried, and the proposed trial has
would like to have a sailors opinion as to his ability to been used as a reason for delay.’
judge the exact range by taking angles on puffs of
smoke during an action in which a breeze may be While referring to the doubtful points which were to
blowing. be solved by the proposed trial of a Moncrieff pit,
Moncrieff did not seek to underrate the value of English was content to allow it to be supposed that
casemates. He considered them to be applicable to the doubtful points in a shield battery had been found
positions where their great advantage, overhead to be completely proof against a 25 ton gun, whilst in
cover, made them most suitable. He was adverse to fact only the iron had been tested.
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